Polestar slashes greenhouse gas emissions by 31% on each car sold since 2020

Polestar has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions per car sold by 31% since 2020, according to its recently published 2025 sustainability report.

The Swedish performance EV carmaker’s latest sustainability achievement is the result of several environmentally friendly measures. These include Polestar 2 and Polestar 3 batteries made with at least 50% recycled cobalt, and low-carbon, recycled materials in the construction of its cars.

Increased volumes of the Polestar 4, the brand’s lowest carbon footprint model yet, are also contributing factors, as is the use of renewable energy across key European markets, which drives down use-phase emissions.

As Polestar heads towards its goal of being a climate-neutral company by 2040, its CEO, Michael Lohscheller, said: “If you are not reducing emissions while growing, you are choosing not to.

“Electrification delivers clear value for customers: lower running costs, lower emissions and greater peace of mind, as volatile oil prices and fuel scarcity mean pump anxiety is increasingly replacing range anxiety.

“As clean electricity scales, electric vehicles are becoming not just the sustainable choice, but the smarter, more reliable one.”

Sustainability is a cornerstone of Polestar’s philosophy. In 2025, it set up its 0 project – a research initiative coupling industry and academia to eliminate emissions from high‑impact materials, products, and processes.

The Polestar 0 project has overseen a large-scale pilot for ultra-low-emission steel, battery material research, the development of bio-based textiles, and technologies that convert CO₂ into new materials.

Since its founding, the Polestar 0 project has secured SEK 100 million (the equivalent of £79m) and has set itself a target of building a net-zero car by 2035.

Polestar sustainability chief, Fredrika Klaren, described the initiative as a driver of the automotive industry.

“The Polestar 0 project pushes us into new territory,” she said. “While much of the industry invests in hybrids and combustion engines, we focus on solutions that eliminate emissions entirely.

“The innovation emerging from this project shows the power of collaboration and material science, and importantly, how well positioned we are to move the industry forward.”

The Polestar 0 project is centred in the Mission 0 house at the firm’s hometown of Gothenburg in Sweden.